Mike Zeisberger, Toronto Sun

Zize joined the Sun in October, 1988, and covered auto-racing, the CFL, NFL and baseball, before moving to the Leafs/NHL beat in 1999. Very sociable, Mike's on a first-name basis with Sidney Crosby, Alex Ovechkin and many other NHL stars. Covers the NFL in the off-season. Lives in Scarborough.

Even before the first name was called, before the first jersey was handed out,
before the first draft pick got to shake the hand of commissioner Gary Bettman, blockbuster trades dominated the 2017 draft weekend in Chicago.

CHICAGO — As young Gabriel Vilardi slowly buttons up the pinstriped Chicago Cubs jersey he has just been handed, it’s not the shirt on his back that has a leather-lunged fan in the stands voicing his playful displeasure.

Less than 24 hours after the Pittsburgh Penguins hoisted the Stanley Cup for a second consecutive season, the oddsmakers were showing some love for the Edmonton Oilers, Toronto Maple Leafs and Montreal Canadiens when it comes to projecting the 2018 winner.

BUFFALO — For about five hours Saturday, George McPhee had a front row seat at Buffalo’s HarborCenter, watching a seemingly endless assembly line of young hockey talent wheez, grunt and sweat through a series of gruelling physical workouts.

On the outside, a gracious Trevor Linden wore the sincerest of grins as he extended his hand in congratulations to Ray Shero, whose New Jersey Devils had just won the NHL draft lottery on Saturday night.

The dawn of a new era here in
Hockeytown earlier this month was not
celebrated with champagne and ribbon-
cutting ceremonies, but rather with men
sloshing around in greyish goo wearing
hard hats, galoshes and smiles.

On the warm Buffalo evening last summer that Auston Matthews was selected first overall by the Maple Leafs in a boo-filled KeyBank Center, a small pocket of Toronto fans sitting in the stands proudly showcased their T-shirts emblazoned with the words “Auston 20:16.”

The window of hope regarding the participation of NHLers at the 2018 Winter Olympics has now closed a little more, due in part to the most gloom-and-doom statement to date delivered by commissioner Gary Bettman.

Imagine being a wee lad of two, gathered with your brothers and sisters on a staircase watching your father kneeling on the downstairs floor, attempting in vain to revive your lifeless infant sibling while your mom is shrieking in horror.